Both sides MIA on plan for agriculture and climate change: NFF
"From Australia’s next Parliament we’re seeking support to help agriculture go further. We want to transform the treatment of agriculture and its intersection with biodiversity protection and enhancement and further develop the developing natural capital sector" : NFF President, Fiona Simson. The NFF wants a commitment from both sides of politics for a minimum $2 billion fund to reward land managers who improve the health of their landscape.
Electric vehicles break the barrier: NSW Ministers
“Now that we’ve rolled out the final chargers along the Barrier Highway, located at Wilcannnia, Cobar, Dubbo, Parkes, Orange and Lithgow, it means drivers travel no more than 300 kilometres to recharge their vehicles when making the 1000-kilometre journey between Sydney and Broken Hill”: Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW Paul Toole.
Plain language guide to the Lord Howe Island Act
The Island is now home for some 350 people, many of whom have roots going back to its early settlement in the 19th century. Unlike the rest of NSW, the law has never allowed freehold title to be created on the Island. All land on the Island continues to be owned by the Crown ... By 1953, the NSW Government considered that a special Act of Parliament was required to better provide for the care, control and management of the Island. The Government recognised the Island as a unique State tourist asset whose beauty should be preserved.
Specialty timber exemption and the petition to amend the Victorian Forestry Plan
The Victorian Ministry for Agriculture has responded to a community-led petition by confirming that specialty timber from State forests is exempted from the 10 year phase out of native timber harvesting in Victorian public forests contained in the Victorian Forestry Plan ... James Kidman from Otway Tonewoods gave Australian Rural & Regional News some background on the 61-page petition he prepared and the Victorian Minister's confirmation of the exemption.
Festivals of the Dry, May-September 2022
The Festivals of the Dry is kicking off in Katherine. See the full program.
More protection for the Cotton Tree coastline with new Maroochy Groyne works to start
Sunshine Coast Council will start coastal protection works on Stage 2 of the Maroochy Groyne Field Renewal project next week to help shield the Cotton Tree foreshore from the current and future impacts of coastal erosion.
Significant Tree Register to help protect shire’s natural history
Trees of significant community or historical value can now be recorded on the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale’s Significant Tree Register, which aims to provide further protection for the trees, as well as recognising the important roles trees play in community health and wellbeing.
Electorate win for MacKillop, Party loss
Sheryl Lowe. From sheep farmer to Parliament House, first term Member for MacKillop Nick McBride MP gained ground in the March State Election with a convincing win over his opponents, but the Liberal Party was defeated in a landslide swing towards the Labor Government. He was also defeated in his bid for Leader of the Opposition but told The News he will continue to advocate for his constituents in MacKillop during his second term in office.
Human resources and equipment important for good roads
Chris Oldfield. Council amalgamations, redundancies and retirements have resulted in the loss of experienced staff when it comes to managing road networks. And often council managers are trained in different fields, not civil engineering. “They are busy doing everything else they have to do,” national road chief Tyrone Toole said. So, road networks deteriorate and costs increase.
Scheme helps farmers break into rural property market
The federal government will help new farmers looking to purchase or establish their own farm by guaranteeing 40% of their commercial loan, as rising land values and access to capital become the main barrier to ownership. Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud unveiled the new pilot and will trial an 18-month $75 million Future Farmer Guarantee Scheme by securing an eligible new farmer’s commercial loan up to a maximum value of $1 million. The scheme is expected to open 1 January 2023.
Rocketing into space from the Territory
The Northern Territory Space Strategy 2022-2026 builds on the success of Territory Space industry 2020 and establishes a vision for the Northern Territory to be recognised as the home of high altitude pseudo-satellites in the Indo-Pacific region, Australia’s premier space launch location and a leading regional centre for ground station facilities.
Flying scientists take off
Some of the country’s leading scientists have taken to the skies in a bid to inspire students across Central Queensland to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Science Minister Meaghan Scanlon said this year’s Flying Scientists trip would be led by former Australian of the Year Professor Ian Frazer AC.
Proposed bridge closure causes panic
Helen Dalton held a community meeting at the Tooleybuc Sporting Club on Thursday, April 14 to address concerns with residents that the Tooleybuc Bridge would be hard closed for six weeks to complete repair works. With the bridge being a lifeline for the border community and the major transport route for trucks travelling to and from Adelaide to Sydney, locals feared that the closure would be the final nail in the coffin for local businesses.
Tobacco bust at Thule
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has seized and destroyed over 276,000 kilograms of illicit tobacco across two separate properties in regional NSW. Illicit tobacco equivalent to the weight of approximately 14 bulldozers was seized, with a total estimated foregone excise value of more than $52 million.
If it quacks like a duck…Climate 200
As someone who has run as an independent candidate, Kookaburra can assure readers that the group of candidates standing for election under the banner of Climate 200 resemble true independent candidates as much as a dog resembles a cat. When I ran as an independent, there was no uncle Simon Holmes a Court freely handing out thousands, he now talks millions, for my campaign. Apparently, with no questions asked and no obligations felt. Seriously?
Sewage solution lights up Logan’s carbon ambitions
Logan City Council has opened an innovative new facility that turns human waste into energy and fertiliser ... The facility, which is the first of its kind in Australia, blasts sewage with extremely high heat to turn it into a product called biochar. Biochar can be used for a variety of purposes including as a fertiliser for the agricultural industry. It also has potential applications in the building industry.
Disaster funding for infrastructure upgrades and strategies
Geoff Helisma. At yesterday’s Clarence Valley Council (CVC) meeting, councillors are likely to have allocated $1 million of Category D funding under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements ... Staff advised councillors that the $700k allocated towards updating its flood plain documentation is “intended to ensure CVC has robust business plans and costings for future funding opportunities”.
Winds of change
What a stuff up! The Solomon Islands entering a security agreement with the Chinese Government has all the ring of the fiasco of the signing of the Darwin Port agreement with a Chinese company with very close ties to the Chinese Government. The pattern for both agreements from an Australia point of view is remarkable similar, probably best called the ‘do nothing syndrome’.
A new era for farm forestry: Toole and Saunders
The NSW Government is introducing new Farm Forestry Codes of Practice that will ensure long-term sustainability for the industry and provide robust environmental protections across the NSW private forestry estate. The new Codes, which come into effect on Monday, 2 May 2022, are the result of a rigorous review of Farm Forestry in NSW as well as advice from the Natural Resource Commission.
Branching out into farm forestry: Duniam
Assistant Minister for Forestry and Fisheries Jonno Duniam said the Farm Forestry: Growing Together strategy recognises the opportunities presented by farm forestry for both farmers and Australia’s forest industries. "We're seeing an increasing demand for timber products, as well as the development of new carbon markets that reward farmers for planting trees,” Assistant Minister Duniam said.
Give graziers more time to muster stray cattle: KAP
“National parks should not be purchased unless there are funds to fully fence and maintain the park. They are the worst neighbours one could wish for with little to no weed control, no fences, nobody living on the property, little fire-fighting capability, and a propensity to shoot cattle" : Sally Witherspoon, Cape York cattle farmer.
Mackeral need protection from anglers, politicians
Dave Donald. While anti-fishing groups have long been opposed to recreational fishing, to claim they have colluded in a major way to “slash Spanish mackerel quotas” is a fabrication. Seeking to lay the blame for the depletion of Spanish mackerel stocks solely on Labor is another furphy as exceptionally poor fisheries management under BOTH major parties essentially created the current situation.
